| Tango01 | 24 Jul 2026 1:28 p.m. PST |
"The Red Baron was born as Manfred Albrecht Baron von Richthofen on May 2, 1892 in Breslau, Silesia. He was born into a noble German family. He was an amazing fighter pilot who fought for Germany in World War 1. According to rumors, by the beginning of 1918, Richthofen had become so legendary that the command feared that if he died, the fighting spirit of the Germans would be dealt a heavy blow…" link
Armand
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 John the OFM  | 24 Jul 2026 8:10 p.m. PST |
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| pvernon | 24 Jul 2026 10:35 p.m. PST |
Some say yes, some say no, and it imposable to know for sure which it is. |
| glengarry6 | 24 Jul 2026 11:15 p.m. PST |
He shot down Snoopy's Sopwith Doghouse. |
| Red Jacket | 25 Jul 2026 7:46 a.m. PST |
I'm always leery of claims of "greatest" anything or anybody. There is always context to consider. I do not know if he was the greatest pilot, at the end of the day, he did not come home alive when a lot of similarly situated pilots did. Unless I missed something, the article does not make an argument for or against him being the greatest pilot. |
| Shagnasty | 25 Jul 2026 10:49 a.m. PST |
From reading about him it would seem that he was a good group leader, a crack shot but only an average flyer. |
| Tango01 | 25 Jul 2026 5:39 p.m. PST |
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| John the OFM | 28 Jul 2026 12:32 p.m. PST |
How great can he be when a CANADIAN shot him down? Hey. It's a joke! |
| Tango01 | 28 Jul 2026 5:25 p.m. PST |
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| Eumelus | 28 Jul 2026 7:20 p.m. PST |
A Canadian didn't shoot him down, an Australian did (from the ground). |
| DBS303 | 30 Jul 2026 1:04 a.m. PST |
In any case, utterly pointless as von Richthofen described himself as a medicocre pilot who found take-offs and landings a challenge, and attributed all his success to being a gifted marksman, a quite different skill set. |
| Tango01 | 30 Jul 2026 5:17 p.m. PST |
We should take into account the funeral his own enemies gave him… I don't think he would have done that for just anyone… Armand |
adds a machinegun platoon to his WWI Brits.
